


When the darkness come

by silverisararermetalthangold



Series: I'll walk through the fire to find my way back to you [4]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alec is pratically a reaper angel ready to murder, Angry Alec Lightwood, BAMF Alec Lightwood, BAMF Jace Wayland, F/M, Hurt Alec Lightwood, Hurt Magnus Bane, Hurt Raphael Santiago, Luke is everyone's father, M/M, Post 3x10, Raphael is making me cry, Shadowhunters Season 3, Worried Luke, edom, everyone is basically hurt and angry, hurt maryse, kidnapped!magnus, like tortured a lot, sorry :), tortured magnus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-06
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-10-23 14:30:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17685257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silverisararermetalthangold/pseuds/silverisararermetalthangold
Summary: Sequel of "Tomorrow we fight"After the fight with Lilith Catarina tell the others that Magnus, Raphael and Luke had been taken to Edom.The squad put everything they have into researches to find a way to go there: will they found out the way for Edom? Will someone's betray the Shadowhunters?Will someone die?





	When the darkness come

**Author's Note:**

> I'M BACK BITCHES!  
> I know, last chapter has been posted in May.  
> but it was my last month in high school, I had exams 'till July, in June the show was cancelled and with it was cancelled even my will to write the sequel, add my fucking lazyness and here we are 10 months later.  
> But then I felt the need to write the complete story as it was in my head, the hope for a renewal came and I begin to write this again.  
> I'm really sorry but I assure you this story will be complete.  
> (Sorry for this monster of more thank words, I don't know what happened, my hands slipped)  
> love y'all ❤
> 
> this chapter was inspired by "When the darkness come" by Colbie Caillat (this song was also used in the Shadowhunter's film which I adored! go watch it)
> 
> Hope you will like it and forgive me for this huge delay.  
> see you at the end of this story!
> 
> ps thanks to everyone who read this serie, again, and thank you if you'll be there 'till the end ❤

* * *

 

 

 

“Easy buddy, throw everything out” Jace was moving his hand on Alec’s back in a circle motion trying to help erasing his pain and relax him a little.

“Do you need to throw up again?” Alec closed his eyes; he could feel the nausea still struck in his throat with every breath he was taking.

 

_One, two, three_

_Inhale, exhale_

Alec was trying to regulate his heartbeat and the sickness in his stomach, but his mind was spinning around the most horrifying scenarios.

_Magnus bleeding with a sword into his heart._

_Magnus tortured and beated by Johnathan._

_The stele touching Magnus’s skin, making him scream._

Alec could almost feel the scent of burned skin under his nose and his stomach couldn’t take it anymore.

The only image of runes carved into his lover made the Shadowhunter bending over the trash can to throw up again.

Clary and Isabelle, with low voices and kind words, told the other shadowhunters - which were watching the scene worrying themselves - to get a rest in their bedrooms.

 

 

“Easy brother, lean on me” Jace was holding his brother’s heavy and weak body with an arm around his waist, one of Alec’s arm on his shoulder.

Clary left Simon’s side to help Jace, even if she was far too short to be helpful.

Isabelle opened the door of Alec’s office while Simon settled some pillows on one of the couches.

Simon looked at him and noticed that Alec was paler than ever and that his hands were trembling more and more every second.

Isabelle helped a shaking and silent Alec to sit down on the couch; a few seconds later Lydia and Underhill – the last one in company of a light brown haired man behind him - appeared on the door, Clary looked at them and saw Lydia holding a cup of tea in her hands.

“I thought this would might help him” Clary smiled gently at them, leading them into the room and then closing the door behind them.

“Alec, can you look at me? We will bring them back from Edom okay? I’m sure Magnus is- is fighting with all he has to stay alive, to come back to his _beautiful and so in love_ Shadowhunter, you hear me?” Isabelle was crouched in front of her big brother, her hands holding his brother’s shaking hands trying to draw little calming circles movements with her thumbs over his palms.

Alec’s eyes were lost in thoughts, unfocused and terrified.

Isabelle could see all the nightmares taking life in Alec’s eyes.

She lifted her eyes trying to find help and comfort in the eyes of the people present in the room.

 

_“Asmodeus’s is my father, he rules Edom”_

_“He took me in, he nurtured my darkest impulses”_

Magnus’ words were coming back into Alec’s mind stronger than ever along with the images of the nightmares that the archer was having every night.

 

_Magnus tortured._

_Magnus bleeding._

_Johnathan beating Magnus while smiling triumphantly._

_Magnus in a dark cell with the runed carved collar on his neck, the one Jonathan put on him the day he dragged him into the portal._

_Magnus screaming in pain while the runes were being carved into his caramel skin._

_Magnus dying because of the runes._

_Slowly._

_Alone._

_Agonizing._

“Alec, please look at me” Isabelle voice was above a whisper now, and was trembling with worry.

“Alec, open your eyes, don’t beat yourself up more than you’re already doing” Jace came near Isabelle and sat down on the couch.

“We will start right now the researches to find a way to Edom, but you need to take a breath and drink something, you won’t be any help in this condition” Izzy looked at Lydia and a few seconds later she crouched next to the youngest Lightwood in the room.

“Izzy is right; I made you green tea, drink a little”

Everyone looked at Alec; he hasn’t moved or spoken a word since he had threw up a while ago.

Clary looked around her and noticed that everyone was concerned about Alec being so silent, sure he has always been the opposite of Jace – solar, cocky and sarcastic even when he was destroyed inside – but he had never been completely silent, usually salty comments and glances were Alec’s traits.

“Alec-“Jace was cut off by a whisper.

“He’s in Hell” a little tear escaped Alec’s eye making his lip trembling a little.

“He’s in hell with Johnathan and a runed carved collar on his skin and I can’t do absolutely nothing, I can’t-“  Alec’s voice began to tremble and the panic was raising more and more every second.

Isabelle tried to calm his brother, failing as Alec got up from the couch; his eyes unfocused and looking lost in his thoughts.

“Okay, Magnus, Luke and Raphael are in Edom, the realm of Asmodeus, we need to do researches-” Isabelle got up while Lydia put the cup of tea on the table “so we can find how to arrive there-“ Isabelle winced as Alec cut her off with his raising voice “YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND! HE-“ Alec bit his bottom lip and clenched his hands into tight fists until he could feel his fingernails dig deep into his palms.

“If I’m not understanding something then explain-“

“ASMODEUS IS MAGNUS’FATHER!”

Catarina raised up her head, her eyes locked on Alec as the shock of realizing that Alec knew Magnus’s secret came down on her.

A heavy silence fell on the people present in the room only to be broken by Alec’s breakdown: all of his feelings bottled up in the last two weeks came on the surface, transforming them into a rage of fury and desperation.

In a flesh, the archer took all of his papers from his desk and threw them to the opposite wall.

“DAMMIT! THIS ISN’T FUCKING FAIR!”

All the reports of patrols, Clave’s business, and books about hell and demoniac monsters were thrown against the wall in a wave of rage and dejection.

“I HAD HIM BACK TO ME JUST A MONTH AGO DAMMIT!” his Ipad joined the files on the floor with a loud crash, little pieces of glass around it while a large crack was spreading on the display similar to a cobweb.

As Clary hided a little behind Jace, scared by Alec’s – unusually - fury, Jace stopped Isabelle who was already up from the couch and convinced to stop her brother, stretching his runed arm in her direction.

“let him take it all out, he needs this” a few seconds after, another object made of glass was broken: the sound resounding in the silent room as Alec stopped, his knuckles a little bloody and scratched for all the punches he gave to the desk, even to the pieces of broken glass scattered on it.

Catarina followed the Shadowhunter’s gaze together with the rest of the people in the room until her eyes fell on a picture with the glass completely broken, making the picture divided into tiny pieces.

A photo booth.

_“Oh Alec”_ the pictures portrayed both Alec and Magnus smiling, kissing and happy.

In the last photo there was even Alec trying Magnus’ jewelry on, a funny and particular sight to see.

Alec’s eyes were glued to the photos; to him these moments seemed years away now.

The blooming of the annual cherries blossoms, all their petals lying on the ground literally covering all the streets, their first date in Tokyo and the jokes about fatty tuna-

All of this was now gone.

 

A drop of salty water fell on the photo, and Alec needed a few seconds to understand that it was a tear, his tear.

Catarina, with a voice low like a whisper, was the first to break the bubble and walked toward Alec, who had now his eyes closed, his jaw clenched and a few tears streaming down his chiseled cheekbones.

“What if Jonathan makes a deal with Asmodeus? What if they turn his magic dark? What if I don’t arrive in time Cat?” he whispered with so much sadness and panic that all she could do was taking his face between her hands and, looking into his eyes, try to take away some of his pain by being his rock.

“Alec look at me” her gestures were gentle as if she was visiting one of her children at the hospital, almost afraid to break the boy even more.

“I know that all you want to do right now is crying and break everything and screaming at life but the sooner we find a way for Edom, the sooner you can kiss him and the sooner I can listen again to my best friend going crazy about your birthday’s gift”

She laughed a little remembering how many nights, when Alec’s was on patrols, Magnus called her for advices.

Alec frowned “Cat”

“Yes?”

“My birthday is in September…and summer just started”

“ _Perfection takes time my dear Cat_ ” they both laughed at Catarina’s imitation of Magnus and then he looked at her, determination in his hazel eyes, darker and watery than usual.

“I will find him and take him back to you, to us”

“I know, I trust you with all my heart Alec Lightwood”

Alec closed his eyes, took a deep breath and then with a calm voice said:

“Henry, John go to the library and take all the books you can find about hell, more specifically about Edom”

Underhill and his boyfriend nodded and then rushed out of Alec’s office to do their job.

“Lydia call my mother and tell her about our mission, leave out the Clave I will talk with them personally” and with that the girl run to call Maryse.

Alec turned around facing Jace, Isabelle, Clary and Simon.

“Go to your room and prepare your things, we don’t know when we will leave for hell”

They nodded and left, closing the door.

Catarina looked at Alec and asked “and you?”

“I’m gonna prepare all the weapons, and then searching in every book we have and I will need your help for our armors”                                                                                                                                                              

 

 

 

**Underneath the echoes**

**Buried in the shadows**

**There you were**

Jonathan didn’t lie about the cell.

It was really a dark, little, suffocating dirty cell built with black marble bricks with some golden veins in it and with a microscopic window on the wall opposed to the door.

Luke tried for days to break the cell’s door without success until he gave up, his muscles screaming for relief and rest.

Raphael was more and more pale and his veins was showing every day more prominent and black.

Luke, soon after being thrown into the cell with the others, ripped off a piece of his shirt to press it into the vampire’s neck to stop the bleeding.

Magnus most of the times looked away; he couldn’t bear the view of one of his children, the most beloved one, dying in his arms.

The only thing he could do after being tortured and reunited in the cell with the other two, was taking Raphael into his lap and run his fingers through his hair in a calming gesture until the light from the only little window began to reach Magnus and so Luke would take him and move him into the darkest corner.

In these moments, Magnus looked at the half-ripped Omamori carefully hidden most of the times.

He would held it tight to his heart, praying for his Alexander to be fine and, sometimes, when he couldn’t hold on himself together anymore, he would end up crying and sobbing in silence.

Two weeks had passed by now, even if the Downworlders had lost track of time; they were tired, drained of energy and two of them almost dead, one by a seraph blade the other by torture, a carved runed collar and handcuffs on his skin, just because he dared to challenge Clary’s brother.

Magnus was gazing at the Omamori in his hand, lost in his thoughts and eyes unfocused.

“It’s still beautiful even if it’s ripped you know?” Luke’s voice snapped Magnus out of his mind.

“I’m praying Raziel every second, hoping that Alexander is fine, that the other half of the Omamori is keeping him safe” Magnus was sitting on the floor, his shirt almost disappeared from the battle and the tortures inflicted by Johnathan.

His once amber skin now was covered in different shades of purple and blue bruises, and he could see the ribs growing more evident at the view:

Luke thought how the hell Magnus was still alive after all the runes carved on his skin, maybe this was another experiment of Valentine and his son learned it or maybe it has something to do with Magnus’s parents, Luke didn’t know.

“L-Luke is r-right” Raphael hissed as a sharp pain flew all over his body.

“If I don’t remember wrong I said to not talk and waste your energy” Raphael snorted and rolled his eyes as much as he could until he began coughing blood from his mouth and the little smile on Magnus’ face disappeared almost immediately.

Luke gently cleaned him and helped him to stop coughing after a few minutes; both men frowning feeling water on their skin, looking up they saw Magnus looking away, his jaw clenched.

“Are you c-crying?” Raphael gave a weak squeeze to the warlock’s hand trying to make him smile or at least, look at him.

“You shouldn’t b-be c-crying” Magnus let out a little sarcastic laugh “why shouldn’t I?” his voice held all the anger for this situation and the feeling of powerless he had since he was kidnapped.

“Because I’m not going a-anywhere, padre” at this words, Magnus closed his eyes and let his tears fall; the warlock turned his face to the vampire with soft eyes and the ghost of a smile on his lips

“Well you’re lucky, I’m not going anywhere either mi hijo” he left a kiss on his forehead while Luke continued press his shirt into Raphael’s wound on his throat without breaking their little bubble asking questions.

Magnus and Raphael were more similar to himself and Clary than Luke imagined, he saw himself with a baby Clary every time he watched the two interacting.

A minute later, footsteps were coming closer and a voice by now familiar let itself heard behind the cell’s door.

“Is our heir of Edom ready for today round?

 

 

**Drawn into your mystery**

**I was just beginning**

**To see your ghost**

 

 

Magnus never screamed so much in his long _long_ life.

In all his centuries, the only time he screamed so much was when his stepfather almost killed him.

But now was impossible not to; the shining tip of the stele touching his caramel skin was too much to bear.

The room smelled of burnt skin and smoke and the more the torture continued, the more Magnus was sure this was the end.

His mind was sure on the fact that he would never see his Alexander again; after all, he was a downworlder and the fact that he wasn’t already dead by the runes was a miracle for him, or an experiment for Clary’s brother.

Or maybe his demon blood relation was saving him.

He would never have the chance of talking with Alec about building a family and someday maybe putting a ring on it or waking up in his shadowhunter’s arms, talking about their days and complain about people and the Clave, laughing, going on dates.

At least he said he loved him as his last words.

“When I will have the Lightwood boy in my hands I will kill him right in front of you my highness, slowly” Johnatan pressed the Steele into Magnus’ agony rune on his neck again, extrapolating another loud scream from the warlock.

Johnatan looked satisfied, but his need of torture never ended.

After hours of pain, the only thing that helped Magnus survive was seeing the ghost of Alec in the room, smiling at him.

Magnus kept on seeing him when he was tortured, Alec was the only thing that kept him sane and gave him strength and the will to hold on, to remain strong, and to not surrender.

To keep fighting.

He promised to himself that he would have survived just to see the shadowhunter’s smile again, even for one last time.

 

 

“Is this Japan?” Simon tilted his head and six pair of eyes turned to him.

“Aww this is a photo boot!” Clary looked at a series of photos inserted into one of Magnus’ gold and baroque frame picture.

“By the angel is Alec smiling?” Clary hit Jace with the elbow glaring at him

 “What? I never saw him smiling like that my little carrot”

“Because you never saw him with Magnus at the Hunter Moon, it was like seeing the personification of the heart eyes emoji” Simon smiled remembering the times he saw them playing pool and acting like a married couple while he had to wait Maia to finish her turn at the bar.

“Oh, and that’s Paris! Look at the Tour Eiffel behind them! It’s so romantic.”

“They seems drunk- “Isabelle smiled fondly at her brother’s red cheeks, he was so different now.

The girl sighed when a voice made them jump “why are you looking at my photos instead of doing researches as I ordered?” Alec came out of the bedroom of the loft with a towel on his hair, dark grey sweatpants and a midnight blue t-shirt.

“We were doing tea because we almost finished the last books and we needed five seconds pause” Clary popped out from the kitchen with a tray with 4 cups of peach and mango tea.

“Okay, I think we’ll need the help of the Clave’s library here maybe they have something that normal institutes don’t have” Alec set down on the couch and then glared at his brother

“And by the way I wasn’t drunk in Paris” his cheeks flushed red “I just had a few drinks” he finished his sentence mumbling into the cup letting the others giggle at his reaction.

“I think we need armors, not our typical one” changing the subject, Isabelle looked at the others while taking her cup of tea.

“I mean Edom is an infernal dimension maybe there will be fire, or smokes that a Nephilim can’t breathe for too long, or even Asmodei” Alec nodded silently with a hand on his temple slowly massaging it.

“You’re right, I’ll talk to Catarina”

While Alec got up to phone Catarina, the others returned on researches on the last books they took to the loft; they were determined as ever but they couldn’t find nothing in all the books they were looking.

Jace looked outside the windows; the sky was a dark palette of grey shades, in a few minutes it could have begun a rainstorm.

There was something stuck in the man’s mind _: how could has Johnathan known the date of the council where he had planned to kidnap the downworlders, if he was in another dimension? Could he have allies in this world? And if he had allies, who were they?_

 

 

**But you must know**

**I'll be here waiting**

**Hoping, praying that**

**This light will guide you home**

 

 

When the door of the cell opened, all the colors drained from Luke’s face.

Two Endarkened Shadowhunters held Magnus’ body by his arms; his clothes were cut or ripped in in different parts but the thing that made Luke almost throw up were the runes on the warlock’s skin.

The two Shadowhunters threw Magnus into the cell and then closed the door, Johnathan’s voice clear and with a hint of fun.

“This was only the beginning my highness” he laughed and then disappeared, Luke run to Magnus’ side trying to understand if he was at least breathing.

“Magnus? Magnus come on open your eyes, you’re safe for now, I’m here I’m here” the warlock nodded slowing and then fell asleep, too much tired by the torture inflicted mentally and physically.

Luke, after he was sure Magnus was asleep, took a deep view on the warlock skin: different blue and purple bruises all over his body, agony rune on his neck and dried blood on his lips.

The hope to not be the only one surviving was slowly fading from Luke.

A week and half had passed but the squad didn’t find a way for Edom in all the books of the Institute.

Alec was the most nervous, he didn’t even sleep or eat well, and the nightmares continued every time he tried to close his eyes.

He was in his office with Clary, fierce and determinate like he never saw her, Simon, Lydia and John while Izzy and Jace were on a patrol with Henry, Underhill’s boyfriend.

A few minutes after, they heard a knock on the door and Catarina’s head popped out behind the door.

“Cat, how you’re doing? Did you find anything?” Alec got up to kiss her cheek and noticed a red-haired woman behind Catarina, in silence with a little smile on her lips.

“I could be better and no, about Edom nothing, but about the armors yes” Catarina brought the woman next to her and presented her to the rest of them.

“This is Lava, the best warlock in creating dress, she’s a stylist and I just saw some of the sketches of your armors guys, you’re gonna slay Edom”

A tall woman with a very pale skin wearing a blue knee dress came in front of Alec “well, welcome at the New York Institute Lava and thanks for your help, I’m Alec Lightwood and those are my shadowhunters colleagues Clary Fairchild – Morgenstern, John Underhill and Lydia Branwell while he” Alec pointed at Simon

“He’s a day lighter, a friend of us”

“Clary did you hear that? He called me a friend I’m gonna sign this on the calendar” Alec rolled his eyes glaring at Simon, and then set up on the couches with the others.

“My friend Catarina told me what happened” even if she talked in English, you could have heard the French accent into every word.

She put her sketchbook on the table and then looked at the people sitting in front of her “Edom is not exactly Disneyland, why shadowhunters are so determined to go into it for these three downworlders? In all my long life I never heard that people like you want to save people like me” Alec clenched his jaw.

 

_It will be a long way to erase the shadowhunters and downworlders prejudices._

“Because they’re people, and our job is to save people from monsters” Alec’s voice sounded firm and low “Not all shadowhunters are the same, we’re trying to be better” Lava looked at him, if she was surprised by Alec’s affirmation, she didn’t show it.

“They also have personal bond with all of us” Clary held Simon’s hand tight in hers

“Luke is the man who I consider my father, Raphael had history with Isabelle and is a good friend and Magnus- “she looked unsure at Alec, his knuckles white for the rage of this whole literally infernal situation, all this talking for Alec looked unnecessary and necessary at the same time.

He just wanted to find that damn way as soon as possible.

“Magnus is my boyfriend” Alec closed Clary’s speech looking at the red – haired warlock, one-half of her lips up in a smile and then she turned towards Catarina:

“Our Magnus? The one who pushed you, Ragnor, and me into a pirate adventure in the Pacific Ocean? The Pandemonium owner that didn’t want serious relationship anymore? That Magnus?”

“Something’s changed in these months” Catarina tried to hide her smirk looking at Alec with Lava.

Lava followed her gaze and smiled “His taste in men absolutely, in better I would say” this time the laughers involved everyone in the room while Alec was becoming a living tomato.

Lava opened her sketchbook and then took her pencil “well, better be quick then, a wedding without one of the two grooms is not a wedding, right?” she winked and laughed with the others at the redness of Alec’s cheeks.

“So, I know there’s a person who uses a whip, one who uses a bow, and the rest swords am I right?”

 “I use the bow, my sister the whip and Clary and Jace the swords but my sister and Jace are out on a patrol right now, they should be here soon” the red-haired warlock smiled at Alec and Clary “well, let’s get started with you two then”

 

 

“You look like a dark Wonder Woman with the skills of Lara Croft” Simon looked at Clary and Isabelle – returned from her patrol with Jace and Henry - with their new armors on.

The armors were composed by a black fabric, on the front both girls had an asymmetrical breastplate with a reinforcement over the heart, a silver cordura webbing held the breastplate to their back.

On their shoulders, little black metallic wings modelled into the shape of their bodies – after all, they were Nephilims, Lava wanted to have a little fun on that detail –met their ending on their shoulder blades, acting as a gate for the swords, keeping them in place.

Two thigh holsters on each of their leg for smaller blades and daggers for Clary, leather gloves at their hands with metallic protection on each knuckle to protect them from wounds/cut and to inflict more damage with punches.

At their ankle and forearm molded black guard, last detail: military black boots with multiple hidden spots for other smaller knives and knees - pads.

The perfect armor for warriors of the Angel.

 

“Well, I hope you love me more than these two women you just nominated otherwise for you hell will be Disneyland opposed to me” Isabelle give a quick peck on Simon’s cheek smiling like a devil, making Clary and the others laugh too.

“Trust me, she can be way more terrifying than a greater demon” Jace’s amusement made Underhill and Henry laugh more.

Suddenly the door opened, and everyone stopped talking as Alec entered the room in his new leader - armor and Jace whistled at him “look at you bro, you look like a reaper angel ready to slaughter Jonathan’s throat with your bare hands”

“Because that’s what I am and that’s what I want to do” Isabelle smirked a little “When Magnus sees you dressed like this I’m sure he will faint” Alec blushed a little and got closer to Lava to let her do some adjustment on his armor.

Alec’s armor was a bit different from the others, as a leader, it was more detailed and more “angelic”, without counting the surprise of the arrows which Alec was about to find out.

It was black like the others and had the asymmetrical breastplate on his chest with reinforcements over the heart.

On the heart, embroidered with silver twine like Jace and the others (even Simon had the armor yes), there was the famous Nephilim inscription:

 

_Facilis descensus Averno:_

_sed revocare gradum superasque evadere ad auras,_

_hoc opus, hic labor est._

 

_The descent to Avernus is easy_

_But to recall your steps and to reach upper air,_

_This is the task, this is the labor._

 

 

Practically, going in is easy but going out is not.

For Alec, two large silver black wings started from the shoulders and ended attached to the retro of his gear, but they didn’t end on his shoulder blades: they covered the whole back like a second armor.

Between the wings, the quiver was securely stuck and hidden.

On his hands, two marvelous black Kevlar shooting glove reinforced three fingers that suited his archer hands like a second skin.

On each knuckle, a strip of mesh material for ventilation and a metallic wing to be both angelic and inflict more damages on hand to hand.

Lava came in front of Alec with his arrows in her hands; there were three types of arrows with three different tip colors:

“White are normal arrows, yellow are incendiary and red explosive”

“Holy angel, like Katniss in the last movie!” Lava winked at Simon smiling for the understood reference

“I like this vampire, keep him safe so I can nerd with him sometime when you’ll return” Simon looked at the others proudly when Jace spoke up “okay, now that we have the armors, we need to organize a substitutive team that will take our places in our absence, especially yours Alec”

“Lydia and Henry, they know us personally, our personal stories, how I work and what I want especially from the relationship between downworlders and shadowhunters”

Alec raised his arms to let Lava work on his armor “If I return to find a war or something that go against my ideals consider yourself dead dead dead, Seelie Queen style” Simon looked at him _well, he and Isabelle are more similar than I thought._

“Yes sir, we love you too” Lydia said while trying to hide her laugh with John and Henry and the others;

After a few seconds, Jace’s head got trapped into what Clary said soon after “don’t speak of the devil, she can hear anything in this world especially the bad words about her” another round of laughter came over the group.

_She can hear anything in this world_

 

Suddenly Jace’s thought resurfaced: how could Johnathan knew when the council was if he had been in another dimension? Could this mean…?

_After all, she has been allied with Valentine so why not continuing the alliance with his son?_

Jace looked at Alec, _his parabatai, his brother by soul: fierce, authoritative, terrifying in his own pain and determinate to tear hell apart to find Magnus._

_If he was right, Alec would have killed the Queen the first occasion he had._

**When you're feeling lost I'll leave my love**

**Hidden in the sun**

**For when the darkness comes**

 

 

Magnus woke up with the sound of the door’s cell opening.

He turned around looking at Jonathan, the only thing similar to clary were the hair, even if his were much darker than his little biscuit.

By now, the three downworlders had lost counts of hours, days and time in general.

They were drained of energies, spent like a weak candle flame ready to exhale their last breath.

Raphael was the worst of all of them: he was fighting to stay alive but the blood that Jonathan gave him wasn’t enough even for a bat, let alone a vampire.

Magnus was the only one that was being tortured for having the courage of challenging the Morgenstern boy, and all his bruises, dried blood and the agony rune on his chest were screaming for help as soon as possible.

So Luke was by far the only one that had still a bit of energy, and seeing Jonathan appearing on the door to take his umpteenth attempt to tear apart the warlock gave him the strength to try to defend him.

Even if it meant torture for him.

“Don’t touch him” Luke contraposed his body between Jonathan and Magnus, a light fire in his eyes.

“Oh and why would I listen to you?” Clary’s brother let the Steele rotate in his hand nonchalantly.

“Because you can’t hurt me, or Clary will be furious” Luke straight his posture “and we know that what she thinks is all that matters to you”

Luke didn’t miss the flinch in the red-haired boy, and neither did Magnus.

The wolf didn’t see the punch coming that made his face hit the floor and his nose bleeding.

“Luke please, she doesn’t need to suffer more than she is already doing” the two Endarkened shadowhunters took Magnus by his arms “it will be fine”.

The warlock’s lips turned up as a ghost of a smile at the wolf “it will be fine” Magnus said these words with closed eyes and all the pain and sadness and tiredness he had in his body.

“Took him to the same room, the one with the rune on the door” the three of them went out the door, Magnus practically dragged by his arms.

 

The squad was in the Institute’s library, surrounded with books from the entire Institute’s around the world craving for some lead to follow.

Some pages were full of notes about hell, others were full of dust because no one has ever touched them since the only time they read them, and others were laying on a pile and abandoned in multiple corners of the room.

It was almost six in the evening when Robert called Alec.

The institute of Los Angeles had just been attacked.

 

 

 

“Okay you can put them in the infirmary, Catarina helped us adjusting the room” Alec talked with two nurses who were curing a little blonde girl with an oxygen mask on her mouth, unconscious.

“How many Asmodei this time? Did you kill all of them?” Alec was talking to the LA head of the institute while the others were trying to figure out what to do next.

 

Catarina was still in the infirmary helping all the nurses of the institutes along with other two warlocks, when suddenly a weak hand brushed her fingers and a rasping voice – trapped behind the oxygen mask – tried to talk.

“Shh you’re safe, you need to rest” Catarina kindly let her fingers wonder through the girl’s hair, but the girl didn’t gave up.

“oh no no, you can’t take the mask off yet-“ the girl seemed to have the absolute need of saying somethings but of all the things Catarina expected the girl to say she didn’t absolutely expected what the girl said.

“I- I know a - a way t - to Edom”

Two minutes after, Catarina knocked at the door of the room where everyone, except Alec, were.

“Come in” Jace turned around and frowned seeing the warlock “something’s wrong?” Isabelle came closer to Jace “Others injured coming?”

“A girl in the infirmary just told me that she knows a way for Edom” Jace let fall to the ground the book he had in his hands and run out of the room towards the infirmary, the others quickly following him.

“Lydia! Call Alec! Call Alec immediately and send him to the infirmary! Maybe we have found the way!” Jace screamed while running towards the Institute’s alley, his blood boiling with hope.

 

“They took my friend Mark Blackthorn and I heard them talking about bringing him into Edom and sacrificing him there and they had a fire message in their hands but in the chaos of the attack they lost it”

Jace closed his eyes sighing “they lost it, but I didn’t lost it” she winked at him and then coughed for speaking so much so Catarina brought back the oxygen mask while the girl, with fatigue, extracted a little piece of paper from her jeans pocket.

When Jace read Seelie Queen Realm, a little voice in his head resurfaced.

_She can hear anything in this world_

However, Jace couldn’t think anything more as Alec burst into the room with Lydia panting, his cheeks red from the run and his hair messier than ever.

He looked at the people in the room: everyone wore a big smile and the archer could see hope in their eyes.

His eyes fell on Jace: he had a piece of folded paper in his gloved hands.

“Is that- “Jace nodded and then handle it to Alec, his eyes glued to the paper and the words wrote in it, his brow furrowed in concentration and his bottom lip trapped between his teeth.

“Wait” Alec shook his head a little confused “if the way to Edom is in the Seelie’s realm why the Queen didn’t say anything? After all she knows about our researches” everyone but Jace seemed deep into thinking when the Herondale spoke up.

“I think she’s allied with Johnathan” he looked at the girl, Emma “you’re not listening am I clear? And if the Clave want to know something when we’re in Hell you’re not gonna speak, you’re gonna have a low profile”

She smiled at him and give a weak thumb up and then turned her eyes to Alec “I stole t-the b-book from the C-Clave where is w-wrote all of i-it”

All eyes fell on the girl “W-what? I don’t t-trust them, but I trust a-all of y-you” Clary sit down on her bed with a warm smile on her lips.

“This conversation is not happening okay? Don’t put yourself in danger with the Clave, they can be way worse than Valentine sometimes”

“Trust me I-I know” then Emma put her eyes on Alec, who never tell a word after Jace’s affirmation and was still astonished and under partial shock because they finally had a lead, they could prepare their things and go to Edom to save them.

He could finally go to Edom.

“I already put a sign on the page in which y-you’re i-interested but y-you j-just have to g-go to the Seelie Q-Queen and-“ she couldn’t finish her phrase as Alec took her face into his hands and kissed his forehead with watery eyes “thank you, you can’t imagine how much this means to me, to us”

Clary took the book, hiding it under her jacket from suspicious eyes.

Emma gave to the archer a smile with both cheeks red from the sudden act of affection from the Head of the Institute; few seconds after Catarina spoke up

“Okay Alec let Emma go, she’s becoming a tomato looking at you” small laugher filled the little space around Emma’s bed until Catarina talked again, seriously this time

“Okay you need to rest, this conversation never happened and I think you need to prepare your things” she looked at the squad reassuring and nodding to Alec

“Go save our man, and Luke and Raphael”, nodding they left the Infirmary and run to Alec’s office.

 

 

**Now the door is open**

**The world I knew is broken**

**There's no return**

“And the streams of Edom shall be turned into pitch, and her soil into sulfur; her land shall become burning pitch.

Night and day, it shall not be quenched; its smoke shall go up forever. From generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it forever and ever.” He sighed. “And of course there’s the legends about Lilith and Edom, that she was banished there, that she rules the place with the demon Asmodeus, Magnus’ father; that’s probably why the Endarkened were talking about sacrificing Mark Blackthorn to her in Edom.”

“‘None shall pass through it forever and ever’ doesn’t sound very encouraging,” said Jace.

“Emma put a sign on this page, I think it tells about the way” Alec’s hand was trembling

“Do you want me to read it?” Jace voice was fond and reassuring “No, I can do this I just need to-to read” said Alec.

“A pathway that the Nephilim can’t close, because it lies outside the jurisdiction of their Laws. It’s old, older than Shadowhunters—old, wild magic.”

“It’s in the Seelie Court, and it is guarded by the Fair Folk. No human being has set foot on that pathway in more than a hundred years.”

The Seelie Queen was laying on her white, marble, covered in flowers throne, enjoying eating grapes and drinking wine when Johnathan showed up from Edom.

“My darling, are you bringing me news from Edom?”

“The warlock has a though skin, but he will surrender and it will be too late for his stupid Nephilim to even try to save him”

“Speaking of saving, I heard they found something” the Queen sat up “I think that in a few hours they will come to me”

Jonathan put a white and red rose in her hair “Let them come to Edom, I want my sister and the others to die, and I honestly can’t wait”

The Queen rose to her feet and laid a hand on his heart.

“I will tell you after they will leave for Edom, my prince and” her lips curved into a devilish smirk “I suggest a diversionary attack for when they will be in Edom, for how they treated me after Valentine” her eyes darkened

“If they ever return to earth, I want them to find their friends dead, and their world on fire”

“I think to know the right way to make this happen in the most painful way”

“Deal?”

“Deal, now I need to return in Edom, I have some torture to do”

**Now my heart is not scared**

**Just knowing that you're out there**

**Watching me**

 

“In a few hours my squad will leave for Edom, through the Seelie’s realm, to save Magnus Bane, Raphael Santiago and Luke Garroway” Alec was standing at the top of the stairs near the OPS center with Lydia next to him.

He looked at his Shadowhunters and straightened his posture keeping his hands behind his back and looking like he was ready to stab anyone who dared to say something against this mission.

“In my absence, Lydia will take my role as head of the Institute and will continue to maintain the relationship with the downworlders” a little buzz of disagreement came up from Raj’s group but Alec killed them with just a glance “prepare your weapons, we’re leaving soon”

Isabelle run to Alec’s side as he walked down the stairs with Lydia.

“I called Maia and she will come along with the pack, as a way to say thank you and good luck I guess” “Okay so, we just need to put our armors on-“

“it’s going to be okay Alec, have faith” Alec nodded to her, with a fond smile until he heard a voice through the Hearing rune.

“Why should we save these monsters? Risking the lives of our best shadowhunters for nothing” Raj was talking with a brunette girl shaking his head hinting as this whole mission as craziness.

“Don’t listen to him Alec, he’s just stupid, focus on the mission” Clary and Jace came near them with Catarina, just to stop, feeling the tension between Isabelle and Alec “hey what’s happening- “

“Not to talk about Magnus Bane, he’s half demon he belongs there after all- “ Alec couldn’t take this any longer, he was going to put a freaking arrow into Raj’s cold and bigoted heart.

“What did you say?” Alec turned around facing Raj’s group, his eyes burning the Shadowhunter in front of him.

Suddenly the small chattering in the room quieted and all the others shadowhunters turn around to assist at the scene.

"You heard me, he's just a demon and he had been taken to where he belong-" even with the typically shadowhunters speed Raj didn’t see Alec reaching him in two strides, gripping his shirt/throat and pulling him off the ground and against the adamas column behind him.

"that "demon" as you wrongly say IT’S THE FUCKING MAN I LOVE AND I'M YOUR FUCKING BOSS SO WASH YOUR MOUTH BEFORE TALKING ABOUT HIM LIKE THAT DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?!" no one has ever heard Alec Lightwood screaming, with so much rage and fury and no one dared to say a word or breathe right now.

Alec’s height was dominating Raj’s, his wrath magnifying his authoritative figure even more than usual.

“You have no rights to talk about him like that, in less than a year he did more than all of the shadowhunters of New York ever did, he saved my life, he helped the Institute, he helped us track Valentine and risked his life in order to capture him”

Alec’s hand tighten around the jacket of the shortest boy who was trying to not look terrified as hell by his head of the institute, Alec brought his face closer to Raj’s, spiting the words like poison.

“HE PURIFIED THE LAY LINES AND RISKED HIS LIFE TO DO IT BECAUSE **YOU** BLOCKED THE ACCESS, HE LOST EVERYTHING FOR US EVEN HIS FUCKING MAGIC TO STOP MY PARABATAI’S POSSESSION, HE SAVED OUR BOND SO DON’T YOU EVER TRY TO SAY A WORD ABOUT MAGNUS OR I SWEAR TO THE ANGEL I WILL PUT ONE OF MY BELOVED ARROW INTO YOUR COLD HEART”

Raj tried to remain composed in front of this fury but his shaking hands, his large pupils and short breath were betraying him.

Jace was so enjoying the show of his brother kicking Raj’s stupid and bigoted ass that he almost blew up applauding.

Alec’s eyes, filled with fire, turned around at the other shadowhunters – dead silent – of the Institute "DID EVERYONE UNDERSTAND ME?" a chorus of _yes sir_ filled the room while he left Raj’s jacket, letting him go back to the ground.

“Prepare your weapons, we’re leaving for the Seelie Court in a few hours” he turned to Raj “as for you, I see that one banishment to the Wrangell’s Island wasn’t enough, I hope you’re ready for round two” he turned to the guards who took Raj’s by his arms “take him to exile”

While they left, the squad came near Alec wearing wide grins

“Oh Big bro I wish I had popcorn for how you roasted him this time” Isabelle was smiling proudly with her hands on her hips while Jace put an arm around his brother’s shoulders laughing

“This will be the type of things I will tell at your wedding with him-“

“A true wedding this time” Lydia interrupted laughing with Clary “-how he had a Knight in Shining Armor who defended its honor, it will be the goodnight story even for your children-”

“Jace?”

“Yes?

“I will leave you in Edom if you don’t shut up” Jace put his hand on his heart, looking offended but both men had tiny smiles on their lips and in Alec’s eyes they all could see a hint of gratitude for breaking the tension of the situation.

“Seriously now, prepare clothes, food, drinks and weapons I’ll call you in a few hours to put the armors on”

They nodded to him and everyone left for their respective rooms.

 

 

Jace had just finished packaging his backpack when he heard a knock on his door “come in, it’s open”

He turned around to see a flash of flames hair pocking from the door “ehy have you finished packaging?”

“Yes, I just need to pick up food and then I’m done” Jace closed the backpack and then turned to her “why’re you asking?” he crossed his arms on his chest with his eyes glued on her

“I wanted to drop to the Infirmary just a few minutes to say thanks to Emma and Catarina”

Jace’s lips curved into a tiny smile “Alright, we can stop to pick up food then” Clary nodded and then, hands in hands, walked down towards the infirmary.

“Your armors are so badass! You’re gonna burn Edom to the ground” Emma coughed for a few seconds before speaking up again

“Do phones works in Edom? I want to see everything when you come back, like a freaking movie” they all laughed until Clary got up form Emma’s bed

“When we come back you will be the first one to know every badass move we’ve done and maybe we’ll act them too just for you” both girls winked and bumped their fists at one another.

“Clary, it’s time to go pick up food, we can come back before leaving for the Seelie’s realm” Jace moved next to Clary and then came near Emma “remember what we said: keep a low profile and act like you know nothing, Catarina will help you okay? The Clave could put your hands on the mortal sword even on your deathbed-“

“Jace!”

“Ouch!”

Clary smacked his arm while Catarina shook his head playfully “I think it’s time to go, go and save my best friend, and try to keep an eye on Alec…if something happens to him, Magnus- I don’t think he could survive it”

“We’re gonna bring them back, all of them _alive_ ” Jace and Clary hugged both girls and then Emma gave Clary a doubtful look at her sword “is that your weapon?”

“Yes, I had it like two months ago-“

“It’s not a good sword, even I have a better one” she turned to Jace “and you let her fight with that _thing_? Shame on you Herondale”

Catarina bursts out laughing at Jace shocked face while Clary looked amused “Well, seems like we have to do a quick trip to an armory right _Herondale_?”

“I’m gonna buy you the entire armory and then we’ll see who have a better sword little girl” he gave a wink at the girls and then said “actually, I know the perfect place for this”

 

 

The weapons shop looked classic and ancient outside, with a deep green and gold wood signboard above the door with “Diana’s Arrow” carved in in silver, two high arrows crossed near the door and a showcase full of weapons that looked very old and very precious.

Clary never thought she would have described a weapons shop as gorgeous before—maybe a sunset, or a clear night view of the New York skyline, Jace under the moon’s light, but not a shop full of maces, axes, and sword canes.

 

Inside the shop were blades of all types: gold, steel, and silver. A massive chandelier hung from a ceiling painted with a rococo design of golden arrows in flight.

Tibetan longswords, their pommels decorated with turquoise, silver, and coral, and then arrows of all measures and type, bow high twice Clary’s height shining like diamonds or ebony; _Alec would have liked it._

 

“You’re looking for something?” A woman asked, reaching the counter in front of her.

The woman smiled. “I’m Diana. Diana Wrayburn.”

“Yes, I’m looking for a sword, well…better that the one I own, looks like mine sucks” Clary and Diana laughed while the Jace looked around to see if there was something useful for _well, going to Hell_.

Clary reached for a short-sword hanging on the wall. There were old runes along the shaft, old runes probably because Clary didn’t recognized them.

 

“Those are runes, but not Shadowhunter runes,” said Diana. “That’s a Viking sword—very old. And very heavy.”

“Do you know what it says?”

“‘Only the Worthy,’ ” said Diana. “My father used to say you could tell a great weapon if it had either a name or an inscription.”

“I saw one yesterday,” Clary recalled. “It said something like ‘I am of the same steel and temper as Joyeuse and Durendal.’”

“Cortana!” Diana’s eyes lit up. “The blade of Ogier! Cortana is a Carstairs blade, I think. Is Emma Carstairs the owner now?”

Clary nodded, she had seen it in Emma’s backpack near Catarina in the Infirmary the day she arrived.

Diana pursed her lips. “Poor child,” she said. “And the Blackthorns, too. To have lost so many in a single sweeping blow—I wish there was something I could do for them.”

“Me too,” Clary said.

Diana gave her a measured look and disappeared into a room.

She came up a moment later with a sword about the length of Clary’s forearm “What do you think of this?”

Clary stared at the sword. It was undoubtedly beautiful. The cross-guard, grip, and pommel were gold chased with obsidian, the blade a silver so dark it was nearly black. Clary’s mind ran quickly through the types of weapons she had been memorizing in her lessons—falchions, sabres, backswords, longswords.

“It’s a shortsword, look at the other side,” said Diana, flipping the sword over.

On the opposite side of the blade, down the center ridge, ran a pattern of black stars, in the middle of the sword, a gold vein formed a bigger star.

“Oh.” Clary’s heart thumped painfully; she took a step back and nearly bumped into Jace, who had come up behind her, frowning. “That’s a Morgenstern sword.”

“Yes, it is.” Diana’s eyes were shrewd. “Long ago the Morgensterns commissioned two blades from Wayland the Smith—a matched set. Larger and smaller, for a father and his son. Because Morgenstern means Morning Star, they were each named for a different aspect of the star itself—the smaller, this one here is called Heosphoros, which means dawn-bringer, while the larger is called Phaesphoros, or light-bringer. You have seen Phaesphoros already… Valentine Morgenstern carried it, and now his son carries it after him.”

“You know who we are,” Jace said. It wasn’t a question. “Who Clary is.”

“The Shadowhunter world is small,” said Diana, and she looked from one of them to the other.

Clary looked doubtfully at the blade. “I don’t understand,” she said. “Valentine would never have given up a Morgenstern sword. How do you have it?”

“His wife sold it,” Diana said. “To my father, who owned this shop in the days before the Uprising. It was hers. It should be yours now.”

_Jocelyn, this sword had belonged to her mother._

Clary shuddered. “I’ve seen what the larger version of that sword can do in the Morgenstern’s hands, and I hated it. There are no Morgensterns in this world now who are dedicated to anything but evil.”

 

Jace broke the silence “There’s you.”

She glanced over at him, but his expression was unreadable.

“I couldn’t afford it, anyway,” Clary said. “That’s gold, and black gold, and adamas. I don’t have the money for that kind of weapon.”

“I’ll give it to you,” said Diana. “You’re right that people hate the Morgensterns; they tell stories of how the swords were created to slay thousands at once. They’re just stories, of course, but still—it’s not the sort of item I could sell elsewhere. Or would necessarily want to. It should go to good hands.”

“I don’t want it,” Clary whispered.

“If you flinch from it, you give it power over you,” Diana took her hand into hers “Take it, and cut your brother’s throat with it, and take back the honor of your blood.”

She slid the sword across the counter to Clary. Wordlessly Clary picked it up, her hand curling around the pommel, finding that it fit her grip—fit it exactly, as if it had been made for her. Despite the steel and precious metals in the sword’s construction, it felt as light as a feather in her hand.

The black stars winking at her like a challenge.

_Take me if you have courage._

Maybe she could create one good thing from a bad thing.

After a long moment, she released a breath she didn’t realized she was holding and then spoke, her voice low but firm “I take it”

Clary’s eyes were burning like her fiery hair, the fire inside her heart for all of this mess and destruction growing bigger with every breath she took.

 

A minute later, Jace heard his phone ringing: it was Alec.

“Clary Alec it’s calling us, we need to go”

Clary snapped out of her thoughts and looked at Diana’s white – mourning – dress: “I’ll get revenge for all this blood”

“I didn’t doubt it for even a second Fairchild” she smiled kindly at her and then Clary was out with her new sword.

 

“We’re leaving in two and half hours, we need to be quick with food redhead” he tried to make her smile and of course, he succeeded.

 

 

“- we don’t want to upraise a war, so we’ll follow them as reinforcement in case something goes wrong and to frighten them, especially the Queen” Jace and Clary entered just as Lydia was at the end of her explanation of the plan in the Seelie’s realm.

“If she refuses, we’ll use the force. Now get change, we’ll leave in half an hour”

Lydia knocked at Alec’s office with Clary and Jace “knock knock, everybody has clothes on?”

“Come in you parabaidiot”

“This bossy side of yours is always so nice to me” Lava hide her laugh behind her hand before turning to Simon to help him with the armor while Alec helped tracking runes on Izzy’s back and neck before putting the top of the armor on.

Alec was in the same condition of Izzy “Draw the runes on my back so I can put the rest of the armor on” he looked at Jace, giving him the stele.

 

A few minutes later, Underhill and his boyfriend knocked at the door “Sir, Maia Roberts and Lorenzo Rey are here”

“Let them come”

As soon as Maia entered she gave a loud whistle “I thought you wanted to save Magnus, not killing him” she chuckled along with Isabelle “I prefer the first option but everyone here is betting after how many seconds Magnus will faint the second he sees me”

“Well can you blame them? Who did this reaper angel uniform?”

Before Alec could talk, Lorenzo answered, “Lava, long time no see” he turned to the wolf, explaining, “she’s one of the best in making dresses, half of my wardrobe is made by her”

Lava faked a curtsy and then concentrated on Clary’s uniform again while Alec turned to Maia “so, I heard you became the Alpha now?”

“Luke’s absence had begun to build rivalry and stupid fights, someone had to take control”

“The vampires are at the same verge, Raphael was the only one able to control them” Maia furrowed her brows together “for what I heard there’s a vampire that want to take Raphael’s place till he comes back, she’s not so bad from what I heard, pretty badass”

“I sent a fire message to the clan, asking if they could came with us to the Seelie queen but no one answered ye-“ a flame formed in front of Alec, forming a letter “well, speak of the devil” his eyes read quickly the message, smiling “they’re with us, a few minutes and they will be here”

 

Twenty minutes later, they were ready: the runes were drawn, the armors were on, every possible weapon positioned into all the little holsters or boots, backpacks filled with food and drinks.

Alec guided everyone in the hall of the Institute, fierce and terrifying: all the shadowhunters straighten their backs and took their weapons.

Outside they met the rest of the werewolves, warlocks with Lorenzo as their High Warlock (for now) and the vampires, captained by a young girl named Lily.

“Remember the plan, no fight if not necessary, I need the queen alive” Maryse (the one who threatened Robert to talk with the Clave and obligate them to give their benediction to this mission) was standing next to Catarina and Madzie, eyes full of proud for the brave man his son turned into.

The archer turned around and at his command, everyone followed him to the Seelie court.

An army of reapers angels with Alexander Gideon Lightwood as the best reaper of them all.

 

 

**So believe I'll be here waiting**

**Hoping, praying that**

**This light will guide you home**

 

 

There wasn’t so much time left for Raphael.

The clock was ticking quickly for him, and Magnus hated every fucking second of it.

It wasn’t fair.

He lived for centuries, saw so many atrocities, wars, plagues, humans destroying others humans, and at the same time he lived moments that every time he recalled them in his minds he smiled for hours: the trips with Catarina and Ragnor for example.

Those two were saints for standing such an eccentric and explosive person like him.

Life had never been easy or lovable for everybody.

Especially Magnus’: he decided to take downworlders under his wings and protect them like children because this was maybe his biggest dream, but his nature didn’t permit him this gift.

And then came Raphael, a poor little scared boy turned into a vampire, a creature of the night that was terrified to death to being a monster.

_“Ouch, you’re hurting me warlock”_

_“If you stop moving maybe it would hurt less, vampire”_

_“Always so kind”_

_“I saved your life, isn’t that kind?”_

_“No”_

_The warlock stared at the young vampire in front of him, his eyes spent and tired “I would have preferred to die, becoming a monster was never one my biggest dreams”_

_“You’re not a monster; you’re still you…whatever your name is”_

_“Whatever let you sleep at night”_

_“You can sleep here for tonight if you want” Magnus shown the vampire his guest room, puzzled “why are you helping me?”_

_“Because when I was in your place, no one helped me” Magnus gave him a tiny smile turning to get sleep in his room when the little vampire talked again._

_“Raphael”_

_Magnus looked at him sleepily, a question in his eyes “my name is Raphael”_

_Magnus smiled; hand still on the door handle “Magnus”_

 

 

Life had never been fair to Magnus, but taking away his son was the worst thing that ever happened to him.

 

Luke was looking outside the micro window; all he could see was a desolate land, sky the color of blood, and Asmodei flying around.

His mind run to Clary.

_Was she safe? Was she already find out where they were? And if she did, did she already find out a way to Edom?_

If she had find a way, she wouldn’t come alone for sure: the whole gang would be here, like the family they were.

But Luke wasn’t sure that it would have been the best idea; for all he knew, Raphael was almost dead, Magnus was strong but was following the vampire…if Clary and the others would have come, it could have been too late.

They hadn’t much time left.

Two weeks maybe? Raphael less for sure.

Isabelle would be destroyed, Simon could have felt pain when Johnathan practically had slaughtered Raphael, Clary would have felt guilty and devastated if both would have died, Jace same as Clary.

Alec could have become a ghost of himself if he had lost Magnus.

Luke sighed and turned his head lightly towards the other two.

After years, he prayed to the Angel again.

 

 

**When you're feeling lost I'll leave my love**

**Hidden in the sun**

**For when the darkness comes**

 

“Before we enter the portal, all the shadowhunters needs to activate their silence rune”

They did as ordered and then entered into Clary’s golden portal.

All of them landed, without falling to the ground, above something white and cold: snow.

“It’s different from the last time I have been here” Clary was observing the forest around her, not completely white yet, with some colorful flowers scattered near the trees.

Lydia was amazed, as almost everyone “I never been here, I must admit, it’s quite beautiful”

“Don’t let it trap you, it’s all appearance” Alec took his sword and lead them to the throne room.

He was like a flame melting all the snow around him, Jace could feel his anger and pain through the bond burning.

The blonde-haired parabatai wished he could have reassured him, but he couldn’t: not until they would have find Magnus.

 

 

The army walked through a pathway surrounded by musk covered in a pearly shade of white snow, and here and there, you could have seen different packs of flowers of a shy pink and purple.

Suddenly Jace heard a voice, stopped and walked to a marble wall covered in roses and branches.

Alec, Clary and the others came closer to the blonde parabatai, hands on their weapons, ready to attack.

The rest of the shadowhunters and downworlders behind them dead silent, you could have heard even a feather falling on the ground.

Jace took out his little knife and carefully, moved the intricate drape of flowers revealing the throne room where the Queen was.

Breathtaking as ever, her pastel pink dress was filled with white roses, some attached to the dress, some on the long train of her dress, others to the shoulders, little ones into her bloody red hair.

From the ceiling, long drapes made of freezed cobweb, shy pink drapes built with a veil material and even more white roses fallen to the ground till the throne where the Queen was, in this moment, lying and talking with a soldier.

“And how is going with the wild hunt, Gwyn?” the queen held the most blinding white rose that Clary has ever seen.

“I thought you knew my queen, the scream of the Shadowhunters while they were dying ripped even Heaven”

Behind him, Alec could sense all his army tense and even Maia, Lorenzo or Catarina stiffened.

Well, he couldn’t blame them, Alec was ready to get up and kill these dirty traitors and doing a fucking massacre.

Alec returned to the discussion “So I heard my Queen, but this war between the Endarkened shadowhunters and the Nephilim are too much for us, the seelies don’t mix well with angels and demons”

“But I offered you the Blackthorn boy, Seelie’s blood and shadowhunters’ blood, is a rarity” the queen looked at the soldier of the wild hunt “he’s a gift from me and my dear Johnatan, he will be one of you”

With this line, everything fell into place.

Everything _clicked_.

This was the proof Jace was waiting all this time.

This bitch had betrayed them, killed and ripped away three people that were so much more than simply people or downworlders: this fairytale angel on the outside and devil on the inside took away the love of Alec’s life, the father of Clary and one of the kindest vampire out there.

Moreover, all of them were head of warlocks, werewolves and vampires.

She has let the shadow world fallen into chaos and this wouldn’t be forgotten.

“This is a period of rising for the Seelie realm: we grow, we go forward, and we conquer the world.

We are part of a big plan, of the chessboard of power”

The Queen were tracing a the line of a rose’s petals with her white fingers, delicate

 

“If I won’t have your help, I will need a favor: I want you to go back to Johnathan and tell him I want the Downworlders on the wild hunt” the Queen turned her face to the soldier

“And I will need you for the bodies after the war, because there will be a lot of bodies and a lot of a blood; I want the Nephilim to find their world on fire”

 The rose in the Queen’s hand was crashed between her fingers and another soldier came into view from an obscure tunnel “Rhoswen, any news of the Downworlders prisoners?”

 

Alec was furious; his rage on the verge of exploding as everyone behind him; when the other soldier came into the scene and the army of Alec moved their hands to their swords, the archer – as he heard the queen talking about the prisoners – raised a hand up, blocking them.

“I talked with Johnathan just a few seconds ago, he doesn’t care about the vampire or the werewolf’s destiny so he’s letting one die and the other watching” Rhoswen came in front of the queen while talking, bowing down, Clary tense observing him “but the warlock, oh my Queen you should see him”

Maryse saw all the colors of Alec’s face fall and his body tensing and the hand, curled around the intricate branches and leaf, almost white from tension.

 

“Well, maybe it would be more entertaining _hearing_ him, Johnathan is enjoying marking him very much, the stele even lights up red my Queen”

“That’s because Magnus Bane’s blood come from one of the prince of hell, a fallen angel”

The queen laughed a little looking at the soldier “Isn’t life beautiful? A demon with fallen angel’s blood fell in love with the son of the Angel, it’s poetic but as most of the poems out here, it will end in tragedy”

All the Shadowhunters didn’t dared to even breathe and Underhill noticed how Alec’s jaw was tight and how much his hand was shaking from the quantity of the rage in him; Jace turned to his parabatai and looked for his sword “enough information?”

“Enough information” they got up at the same time as Isabelle and her whip destroyed the wall of branches and roses and white leaf to the ground making all the fairies jump in surprise.

Jace raised his golden sword in front of him while Clary did the same with Eosforos, Simon and his teeth next to Isabelle and her silver whip.

Alec and his lethal arrow ready to kill.

The rest of the shadowhunters in a perfect hemisphere around them, sword activated in their hands, Lorenzo with magic at the tip of his fingertips as the rest of the warlocks like Catarina and Madzie, Maia ready to transform with her pack and Lily and Raphael’s vampires all teeth showing as a threat.

Ten soldiers sided in front of the Queen immediately; Clary thought that this was the first time she was seeing the Queen shaken: her scream of surprise and horror resounded through the whole Seelie realm.

 “How dare you enter my realm without being invited?” she asked with gelid tone “this is a crime, this is the worst crime you could do against the Alliance-“

Everyone stopped breathing when Jace’s sword touched the Queen’s neck: a tear of blood running down, her white dress stained with it like it was the mirror of her crime.

“How dare you talking about the Alliance? The same Alliance you and your traitor realm broke? You killed, you lied, you have an alliance with our enemy” Jace’s sword shone reflecting a white light, completely opposite as his eyes: golden flames burning.

“You have ambushed Downworlders of the Council and handled them to Johnathan, you tricked all of us, you lied With the Head of the Institute and you’re gonna pay for this” the sword pressed more firmly “we’re gonna come back and burn you to ashes _My Queen_ ”

“You can’t threat the Queen in her realm! In her House-!” the soldier tried to move beside the Queen but was quickly put KO by a glacial Alec and his beloved arrow into the right soldier’s leg; Alec took out an arrow and pointed it towards the soldier on the ground “where are Magnus, Raphael and Luke? You have five seconds to answer before I turn your useless body into a fucking pincushion” the soldier spit at Alec’s feet and all the shadowhunters behind him took out their swords at the outrage at their leader “torture me, kill me but I won’t betray my queen”

Alec looked at him for a long minute, firm and calm “then die bastard”

The arrow flew right at the center of Rhoswen’s heart: around the soldier, the snow was becoming bloody red.

Alec then turned to the Queen “bring me and my team to Edom, or I swear to Raziel I’ll torture you right here” the arrow was praying to be fired “Do it, for you it changes nothing, Johnatan is waiting for us, do it and I’ll let you live, Bring. Me. To. Magnus”

 

The Queen then laughed, an acuminate and mocking sound “Oh the little archer boy is suffering? Sharp are the pieces of a broken heart my dear” Isabelle noticed his brother’s jaw getting clenched, imperceptible at people who didn’t knew Alec well as her.

“Do you know how much time can a warlock resist a Steele’s touch?” Catarina gasped and hide her mouth with a hand, holding Madzie tight while the warlocks looked visibly irate and outraged.

Alec almost threw up.

Jace tilted the Queen chin with his sword “show us the way to Edom, or this sword will split open your cold and traitor heart” Clary never saw Jace more severe and calm, Jace was never this composed in a situation where swords were involved.

The queen smiled and Clary felt a sharp shiver down her spine “follow me” Jace followed her keeping the sword firm at her pale back, Alec and his bow following behind with Isabelle.

Simon turned to Clary “I hate to say this, but it seemed too easy Fray, she’s not obligated to let enter us in a demoniac realm”

“But she wants to do it, she wants us to die there” Simon looked at the people behind them “and will we?”

“I don’t know Si” She gave his friend a reassuring smile and then followed the rest of the squad with the rest of shadowhunters and downworlders.

 

**For when the darkness comes (oh oh oh)**

 

 

“Do you think they are already here in Edom?” Magnus muttered, his voice full of sadness and pain “I don’t know, knowing them? It could be” Luke tried to move the chains a little to improve his sitting position.

Damned this fucking room big as a donut hole.

Luke turned towards the warlock and watched him: his face appeared the same – except for the bruises and runes – as ever but you could have easily see his 400 hundreds of years in his eyes.

Magnus’ hand was caressing Raphael’s hair, moving the wet locks out from the vampire’s forehead and without noticing, many minutes passed; silence a long friend of theirs by now until Luke spoke “I’m sorry for you two, losing a child is something no parents should experience”

“It’s unnatural, but I’m unnatural too so maybe this is a punishment for being who I am”

“Magnus, you’re one of the kindest people walking on earth, shut up or Alec will pop out to slap you for saying these awful things” they both let out a little laugh, Magnus’ other hand never leaving Raphael’s right cold and sweating hand.

“Have you ever thought of having children with Alec one day?”

“Since Catarina adopted Madzie…you should see them, he’s been born for fatherhood” while talking, Luke noticed how much Magnus’ eyes were fond, they shined like a thousand sun when the subject was Alec.

Luke wondered if he had the same look when he talked about Maryse.

How strange is life to put together Luke Garroway and Maryse Lightwood after all the mess they have been through?

“You should take the next step with Maryse you know? Alec said he never saw her mother so happy since Robert’s cheating” Magnus turned his head towards the Wolf, smirking “you would become my father in law” they blew up laughing “Alec would see Clary everywhere if she come live with me and Maryse”

“I can already see Alec rather come back to Edom”

“Maybe in the beginning, now I think he treats her like another sister”

“Yeah, they’ve come a long way since they first met”

“Well she makes Jace happy and less crazy in battle; I think Alec thanks the Angel for this”

“Yeah, all of them are different but necessary to complete each other’s, we’re lucky Luke to be loved by two son of the angels, you know that?”

“Maryse doesn’t have her runes anymore, is she a fallen angel?”

“We are all fallen my friend”

 

That night, Luke fell asleep with his mind full of gold dress, vows and the shadow of a ring.

 

 

 

**Be here waiting**

**Hoping, praying that**

**This light will guide you home**

 

 

Everyone was following the Queen into a dark hallway, full of massive oaks with their upper branches intertwining and forming a sort of natural ceiling.

The more they walked into it, the darker it was getting.

Clary noticed the heavy silence around her, everyone was or on alert or absorbed into their mind.

Clary belonged to the second kind: she was thinking of Luke in first place, her true father even if he didn’t have her blood; on how much she missed when she was little and drew family pictures all over Luke’s report.

She was thinking of Luke and his mother and the pure love they shared and asked herself if Luke – if he was still alive – was thinking the same.

The Redhead glanced at Jace then: shining sword in his strong and determined hands, eyes burning like melting gold, posture tense and fluid at the same time.

A real warrior angel walking on earth.

And now her boyfriend after first Valentine and now Lilith’s situation.

“here we are” the Queen stopped and turned around, Jace’s sword soon near her neck “can you guess which is the right way?” her tone was mocking them and Isabelle never wanted to kill someone so bad.

There were three open portals: the first, in front of them, was bright and large and surely not the one they were looking for.

The second one shone with green and orange leaf, on the ground millions of flowers that got lost in the distance, all of them of all the colors existent.

Clary saw even a veil of blue sky behind the leaf; instantly she wanted to run into that portal and forget about demon blood and deaths.

The last one had a dark and narrow tunnel, the opening surrounded by sharp pieces of metal intricate with branches full of thorns.

Alec lowered his bow and arrow and looked at the third portal with a refunded hope in his hazel eyes.

“I want to see how you will laugh when I’ll rip that smile off of your face with my bare hands when I’ll come back _my majesty_ ” Isabelle hissed along her white lightened whip.

The Queen looked at her coldly “if you come back”

Before Isabelle could kill her Alec stopped his sister and turned around “Lydia, Henry arrest the Queen and keep her in our prison till our return” the archer locked his eyes into the Queen’s “The Clave will decide her destiny”

Lydia and John did as instruct even if the Queen tried to resist, screaming something about the broken accords, Alec ignored her and then turned to the shadowhunters and downworlders behind him.

“Lydia, from now on, you’re the leader of the New York Institute”

Lydia came in front of Alec and then, surprising everyone, she hugged him tight with teary eyes “go and save your man, but promise me you’ll come back”

Alec heard his mother snuffling and trying to hide her tears above Lydia’s hair; a second later Isabelle was wrapped into her arms, her left hip hugged tight by Max.

Maryse looked up to Jace standing near Clary and then spread her right arm: _what are you waiting for, my boy?_

They both smiled at each other with watery eyes and a second after Jace was a part of the hug too.

Clary and Simon run to hug the new Alpha of the New York pack but, first of all, their friend: Maia.

Clary had become her friend long ago, since she and Simon were a couple months ago; Maia was easy, sarcastic and badass, Clary admired her.

Simon, well, Simon had had history with her, and after their break up they remained good friends, now she was with Bat and Simon with Isabelle and everyone looked happy.

Well, as happy as you can be in the time of a war.

While Clary and Simon hugged Maia and even Lily, the new vampire leader after Raphael, Lydia let Alec walk to her mother, now in tears, and enveloped all of her children.

Isabelle and Jace let go of Maryse and stayed at each side of the ex-Shadowhunter, watching the scene.

Maryse walked to Alec, her hands trembling while she reached his face.

“I’m so proud of you Alec, I’m proud of the man you’ve became, the warrior that fight because he wants to and not because is forced to” a tear was now travelling down the woman’s cheek.

“I love you my baby, please stay safe” Maryse looked at Isabelle and Jace “all of you, I love all of you-” a sob interrupted her speech and all her three children – that were going to Hell - came to hug her one last time.

Neither of them wanted to let go, it could have been their last moment together, but eventually they broke off the hug wiping away every single tear escaped.

“We need to go mom, but we’ll come back soon I promise” Isabelle smiled at her and then crouched at Max’s level, literally devouring him into her arms trying not to break down crying.

“Max, I need you to be a calm little boy for mum okay? We won’t stay away for long monkey” Catarina looked fondly at the two Lightwood talking “what are you saying? I’m already a good boy, the best!”

“Yes you are my lil’ bro” Isabelle held him tight but soon after Max spoke again “I can’t breathe! Alec! Jace! Help a poor little man!”

Almost everyone laughed at the smallest Lightwood, even Madzie half hidden behind Catarina.

Isabelle let her brother run to Alec and Jace, his brothers, his best friends, his family: the trio that always made fun and joke of Isabelle and that every time ended with their asses on the floor.

A good minute later, Alec got up with reluctance but determined; it was time to go.

“We need to go; we need to save as much time as possible”

Clary and Simon let go of Madzie and Catarina and then thanked Lava for all her work with the armor and weapons.

The squad turned around towards the portal to Edom: Clary and Simon walked towards the dark tunnel and casted one last look at the other people in the realm: all the downworlders and shadowhunters looked sad and terrified but fierce even when they were scared.

Isabelle let go her brother “I love you monkey, wait for me to cook our favorite pie together to celebrate this mission okay”

“Eww I don’t wanna die Izzy” they laughed when Jace spoke “you’re growing up so good man, Izzy’s food is the worst kind of demon” everyone blew up laughing and after one last hug to Max and Maryse, Isabelle and Jace walked towards the portal, near to Simon and Clary,  and waited for Alec.

Alec went to Catarina, Madzie and Lava; the little girl immediately jumped into his arms “are you going to bring uncle Magnus back?”

“Yes, sweet pea, so you two can take ice cream together again” Madzie nodded and then hide her face in the crook of the archer’s neck.

A minute later Alec thanked Lava and then was standing in front of Magnus’ best friend;

“Thank you, Alec, for all of this; thank you for choosing Magnus, for loving him” the warlock had two tears rolling down on each cheek “I’ll never say thank you enough to the angel for putting you on Magnus’ way”

Alec held her hands in his, tight and firm “we’re gonna come back Cat, I promise you”

“Let me do one last thing for you” Catarina took the omamori hidden behind a task on Alec’s breastplate uniform and blue sparks flew into the air; apparently, nothing changed.

“What did you do?”

“Protection spell, so nothing will destroy it, like you two” Alec let a tear fall on the omamori, eyes closed.

“Thank you” Alec was moved by this gesture.

After a long deep breath, he went to his mother.

Maryse took her eldest son’s face into her trembling hands “I’m proud of you my boy, go, find Magnus and then burn Edom to the ground my angel” she kissed his forehead “stay safe”

Alec closed his eyes, took her mother’s face and then left a kiss into her ebony hair.

“I’ll come back, I swear to Raziel we’ll come back, all of us, alive” Maryse nodded, incapable of speaking without risking a breakdown; 

Alec turned around and walked towards the others that were waiting:

_Well, let’s the mission begin for real._

 

 

 

**When you're feeling lost I'll leave my love**

**Hidden in the sun**

**For when the darkness comes**

 

 

_“What’s that?” Maia gave Magnus her most shining smile while cleaning a dirty glass._

_“Oh a gift, you know I don’t remember the last time someone bought me one” the warlock smile faded a bit, his eyes falling on the charm in his hands_

_“Usually it’s always commands: Magnus reinforce the wards! Heal my broken heart Magnus!  Portal me to Paris Magnus!” Maia could see the sadness in his expressions and imitations of old clients but even a little spark in Magnus’ eyes deriving from the little colorful object “is it from someone special?”_

_“I think so” the smile Magnus gave her shown all the love for the protagonist of the little story._

_Alexander_.

 

 

How many days had passed? Maybe even weeks? Magnus had lost track of time.

He could feel his father’s powers boil into his veins louder than ever and this was maybe the worst torture: this fallen angel blood running into him was bringing out his darkest memories: the time when Asmodeus took him under his dark wing and nurtured his darkest instincts.

If Magnus could, he would have ripped away his own blood and mind and forget everything.

However, his father was also a reminder, in his mind, of all the things he wouldn’t be.

There was just a thing that Magnus craved and that Asmodeus had been in his unhealthy way: being a father.

Even this dream, for Magnus, had faded.

 

 

**Hidden in the sun**

Steps.

Johnathan was coming for the umpteenth round of tortures.

Magnus and Luke turned their heads towards the door of the cell: black with a giant golden block rune in the middle, impossible to open without a Steele.

Magnus hide the omamori, watched the alliance rune on his wrist one last time and then made a deep long breath.

_I’m ready to fight to stay alive, c’mon Johnathan, I’m here._

 

The crackling sound of the door opening, revealing Johnathan’s triumphant smirk, made Luke turning away and again, made him pray to the angel.

Again, the hours started again to be marked by Magnus’ screams.

Luke moved his eyes from Raphael, less and less alive each day, to looking outside the little window: the only thing they could do was waiting, but maybe they were finishing the time.

_I know you’ll come little bee, by the Angel, be it soon._

 

**For when the darkness comes**

 

Jace and Isabelle were the first ones to enter the black tunnel to Edom; in a blink of an eye, they were gone.

After one last look at the other people, Clary and Simon followed them into the darkness, their hands intertwined, _wherever you go Fray, I’ll go._

It was their motto since they were kids.

 

Then the only one remaining was Alec, the eldest Lightwood, the New York head of the Institute, the man that said fuck you to the Clave at his own fake wedding.

Son, brother, friend, Head of the Institute, and now a lover.

He had been called many things these days, some awful and other lovely.

Not enough, faggot, traitor, the bitch of a dirty lothario warlock.

However, with time things changed, people became calling him Sir, Magnus’ boyfriend, first Shadowhunter openly gay that helped others people to come out, leader, revolutionary.

Alec closed his eyes, his hands gripping tight the omamori to his chest: close to the heart.

_One, two, three_

 

Alec took a long breath, put away the omamori, and then opened his eyes throwing a last look at his destroyed mother and all the downworlders and shadowhunters behind her.

_Wait for us; we will come back, alive._

 

With this one last thought, Alec walked into the path for Edom, the darkness making him disappear a few seconds later.

**Author's Note:**

> So, did you survived my bad writing and 14k words?  
> if you did, you're a hero.
> 
> hahahahah so you liked it? it was easy to read? the pain was too much?  
> sorry, Johnatan was possessing me in the torture scenes it's not my fault angels ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> okay if you have something to say, comment and leave a kudo, I would appreciate it ❤
> 
> See you in Hell guys, preapre your tissues 😈


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